


Women in STEM

by OneSeriousLady



Category: Marvel (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
Genre: All Respect to Women in Engineering, Cute, F/F, Humor
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-24
Updated: 2019-01-30
Packaged: 2019-10-15 18:28:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17533943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OneSeriousLady/pseuds/OneSeriousLady
Summary: A series of Liv & May one-shots.





	1. First Day

When Dr. May Parker walks by the small, windowless office, Olivia Octavius has got her feet up on the desk. Laser-focused on a paper, Liv doesn’t notice her new boss slow and peer through the door she left slightly ajar. Light from the glassy hallways filters in, compensating for the light switch fixed in the “off” position. Better for the environment. 

May watched her post-doc run her finger along the lines of experimental methodology and chew a pen cap to shreds. A moment later, she knocked softly on the doorframe. Olivia jumped, saw her visitor, and scrambled to stand at attention. The papers in her lap scattered to, well, everywhere. 

“Dr. Parker, good morning!”

“I’m sorry to startle you – it’s nothing important,” May said with an amused smile. “I just wanted to ask how you were settling in on your first day.” 

Olivia had only met May once before, at her final interview for her post-doctoral placement. Now her new principal investigator was crossing her arms and leaning against the office doorframe, looking expectantly at her for a reply.

“Oh, great so far, yes! I’m just familiarizing myself with this procedure.” Olivia gestured futilely to the papers carpeting the floor. 

“Glad you’re jumping right in!” You can ask any of the grad students if you need help finding implements and such. And my office is down the hall to the left should you need me. We should set up a meeting for Friday so we can speak more about your plan of attack for this project.”

“Yep! Will do!” Olivia replied immediately, internally chiding herself for replying a bit too quickly. Her mind raced through a hundred questions, but she was too eager to make a good impression to ask them all immediately. 

“Great,” May said conclusively. “I’m excited to work together.”  
The engineer turned to leave, but paused, had an idea, and faced Olivia again with a sly grin.  
“Excited to work together, Post-doc Ock.” May laughed to herself. 

Olivia nodded with a tight-lipped smile until May had gone for good, shoes clacking against the shiny floor down the hall. When the sound faded, Olivia grimaced and sank down into her chair. 

“Please, for the love of God,” she murmured into her hands, “Don’t let that stick.”


	2. The Interview

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Olivia interviews for her position in May's lab.

Olivia was getting lost in the endless labyrinth that was Alchemax’s Brooklyn site. In order to maximize space on prime real estate, the building was designed “efficiently,” which Liv was starting to interpret as “while inebriated.” Still, she managed to find the conference room a little early, and finding the wooden door closed, took a seat in a nearby chair in the hall. Muffled voices escaped from the room, but no one was loud enough to cue Liv in to the content of the meeting. She fixated her gaze on the flyers posted on a bulletin board across from her seat. Lunches with famous scientists, flashy conventions -and oh!- company event at the aquarium. Olivia made a mental note. Her mind wandered until she heard the door open and a group of people in dark business suits filed dutifully out. One woman in a bright white lab coat remained in the doorway. She made eye contact with the hesitant brunette in the chair, and when recognition dawned, clapped her hands together. 

“Oh great, it’s Liv!” She exclaimed. “Come on in!”

As Olivia stood and reseated herself in the conference room, May closed the door behind them. 

“May I call you Liv?” she asked and offered her hand. Olivia took it. May’s hand was dry and cool. Pleasant. Liv smiled.   
“Sure.”  
“Great. Well, I am very excited you’re interested in this position. I’ve been looking for a while for someone to join my on my new projects. And of course, I just got the budget for you. But I digress -- tell me about yourself.”

Liv went through the standard pitch.  
B.S. in marine biology.  
PhD in biomedical engineering.   
Special interests.  
Not-so-special interests.   
The interview went on. 

May began updating Olivia on the Parker Lab’s past achievements and current projects. The post-doc had done her research and nodded as May spoke but started forming her own impressions of the woman. Dr. Parker was one of those people, Liv mused, who put on a lab coat and automatically derailed Liv’s entire train of thought. Oh shoot, it was happening right then. Liv pulled herself back to the present in time for her to hear her potential new boss ask, “Any questions?”

Liv had many questions, always, but contained her enthusiasm and managed to limit them to five. Enough to learn more, enough to be professional. The rest she could space out later, if there was a later. When the two had finished, May stood and smiled. 

“I’ll be in touch with you shortly. I have to say, I think you’d be a good fit for our lab. Now, I have to run to another meeting, but I’ll have one of our grad students show you around the lab.”

As Liv quietly followed another, less interesting lab coat around the area, she was captivated by the machinery. Trailing the male student who pointed out this and that, she ran her hands over chrome and milky glass. She liked the projects. She liked the opportunities for support of independent inquiry. Liv fingered a small, smooth piece of metal on the table. She was an engineer at heart and liked her research cool to the touch.   
But mostly, she liked May Parker.


End file.
